ArticlePloS one2017
Melatonin protects rats from radiotherapy-induced small intestine toxicity.
Article in PloS one, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 54 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
54 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Physiological relevance of autocrine melatonin signaling in pineal and extrapineal sites: a systematic review.Function (Oxford, England) · 2026Pooled it
- Drug Repurposing of Verapamil for Radiation-Induced Enteropathy: Regulation of 5-LOX, Nrf2, and Intestinal Barrier Function.Pharmaceuticals (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Radiomitigators: Breakthroughs in Post-Radiation Recovery.Antioxidants (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Melatonin enhances everolimus efficacy in breast cancer by suppressing mTOR pathway activation and promoting apoptosis and mitochondrial function.BMC pharmacology & toxicology · 2025Article
- Melatonin in Chemo/Radiation Therapy; Implications for Normal Tissues Sparing and Tumor Suppression: An Updated Review.Current medicinal chemistry · 2025Review
- Radiation-induced injury and the gut microbiota: insights from a microbial perspective.Therapeutic advances in gastroenterology · 2025Review
- Dynamic change of gut microbiota in head and neck concurrent chemoradiotherapy patients and its potential value in the prediction of acute oral mucositis grade as well as quality of life.Clinical & translational oncology : official publication of the Federation of Spanish Oncology Societies and of the National Cancer Institute of Mexico · 2024Article
- Microbial melatonin metabolism in the human intestine as a therapeutic target for dysbiosis and rhythm disorders.NPJ biofilms and microbiomes · 2024Review
- Significance of Melatonin in the Regulation of Circadian Rhythms and Disease Management.Molecular neurobiology · 2024Review
- Prospective and challenges of locally applied repurposed pharmaceuticals for periodontal tissue regeneration.Frontiers in bioengineering and biotechnology · 2024Review
- Involvement of the SIRT1-NLRP3 pathway in the inflammatory response.Cell communication and signaling : CCS · 2023Review
- Involvement of inflammasomes in tumor microenvironment and tumor therapies.Journal of hematology & oncology · 2023Review
- Potential of melatonin to reverse epigenetic aberrations in oral cancer: new findings.EXCLI journal · 2023Review
- Oxidative stress, hormones, and effects of natural antioxidants on intestinal inflammation in inflammatory bowel disease.Frontiers in endocrinology · 2023Review
- D-galactose protects the intestine from ionizing radiation-induced injury by altering the gut microbiome.Journal of radiation research · 2022Article
- Locally Applied Repositioned Hormones for Oral Bone and Periodontal Tissue Engineering: A Narrative Review.Polymers · 2022Review
- Standardized fraction of Xylocarpus moluccensis inhibits inflammation by modulating MAPK-NFκB and ROS-HIF1α-PKM2 activation.Inflammation research : official journal of the European Histamine Research Society ... [et al.] · 2022Article
- Hunting down NLRP3 inflammasome: An executioner of radiation-induced injury.Frontiers in immunology · 2022Review
- Oral-Gut Microbiome Axis in the Pathogenesis of Cancer Treatment-Induced Oral Mucositis.Frontiers in oral health · 2022Review
- Melatonin Alleviates Neonatal Necrotizing Enterocolitis by Repressing the Activation of the NLRP3 Inflammasome.Gastroenterology research and practice · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
15 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Radiotherapy-induced gut toxicity is among the most prevalent dose-limiting toxicities following radiotherapy. Prevention of radiation enteropathy requires protection of the small intestine. However, despite the prevalence and burden of this pathology, there are currently no effective treatments for radiotherapy-induced gut toxicity, and this pathology remains unclear. The present study aimed to investigate the changes induced in the rat small intestine after external irradiation of the tongue, and to explore the potential radio-protective effects of melatonin gel. Male Wistar rats were subjected to irradiation of their tongues with an X-Ray YXLON Y.Tu 320-D03 irradiator, receiving a dose of 7.5 Gy/day for 5 days. For 21 days post-irradiation, rats were treated with 45 mg/day melatonin gel or vehicle, by local application into their mouths. Our results showed that mitochondrial oxidative stress, bioenergetic impairment, and subsequent NLRP3 inflammasome activation were involved in the development of radiotherapy-induced gut toxicity. Oral treatment with melatonin gel had a protective effect in the small intestine, which was associated with mitochondrial protection and, consequently, with a reduced inflammatory response, blunting the NF-κB/NLRP3 inflammasome signaling activation. Thus, rats treated with melatonin gel showed reduced intestinal apoptosis, relieving mucosal dysfunction and facilitating intestinal mucosa recovery. Our findings suggest that oral treatment with melatonin gel may be a potential preventive therapy for radiotherapy-induced gut toxicity in cancer patients.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.